Although a critical third stage of a North Korean rocket apparently failed in a launch Sunday, U.S. military and intelligence officials and weapons experts said the test had raised new concerns about advancements in Pyongyang's mastery of missile technology. North Korea said the purpose of the launch was to place a civilian satellite into orbit. U.S. and Western officials said it was not clear whether there was a...

SEOUL (Reuters) - A former North Korean missile expert who was sanctioned by the United Nations for his role in the North's nuclear and missile weapons programmes has died, state media said on Wednesday. The announcement of Jon Pyong Ho's death came as North Korea launched short-range missiles into its eastern waters in the early hours of Wednesday. The missiles, which a South Korean joint chiefs of staff official said appeared to be ballistic Scud-class...

Iran on Saturday dismissed allegations of providing test sites for North Korean long-range missiles designed to deliver nuclear warheads, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported. A Bush administration official claimed earlier that North Korea was getting around a self-imposed missile test ban by sharing technology with Iran, which is allegedly testing missiles on Pyongyang's behalf. Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani rejected the claim, saying, "Iran does not cooperate with...

* Lockheed Martin sees rising demand for its missile shield systems * CEO says products also match needs of U.S. for "pivot" to Pacific * Intl sales seen rising from 17 to 20 pct of total in coming years By Jim Wolf WASHINGTON, Dec 13 (Reuters) - North Korea's launch this week of a long-range rocket may have sparked an outcry across much of the globe but the anxieties it has provoked could mean more business for Lockheed Martin Corp,...

The United States has imposed sanctions on Russian companies for selling missile technology in violation of international export controls, Clinton administration officials said Thursday. But the sanctions have been waived until mid-July while Washington and Moscow make a last-ditch effort to resolve their differences. The decision to impose the sanctions, which would bar American companies from doing business with the Russian companies, marks a further escalation in the dispute...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - North Korea's successful rocket launch poses a fresh quandary for the United States, underscoring how its "shame and sanction" approach to Pyongyang has failed to stop the country's dangerous advances in both nuclear and missile technology, analysts and officials said on Wednesday. The Obama administration has condemned Wednesday's launch as a "highly provocative act" for which there would be "consequences" and has began...

American intelligence reports indicate that China is continuing to sell missile technology to Syria and Pakistan despite statements by Chinese leaders that they are willing to curb missile exports, according to senior administration officials. Beijing has recently sent to Syria about 30 tons of chemicals needed to make a solid-fuel missile and plans to send 60 tons in March or April, said the officials, who added that the amount was enough to make a "significant" number of...

* Graphite cylinders had been declared as lead piping * China, South Korea investigating the seizure By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS, Nov 13 (Reuters) - A shipment of graphite cylinders usable in a missile program and suspected to have come from North Korea was found in May aboard a Chinese ship en route to Syria in what appears to have been a violation of U.N. sanctions, diplomats said on Tuesday. South Korean officials seized...

Immediate human rights concerns have mistakenly been placed at the center of the debate over United States-China trade and relations ever since the 1989 massacre in Tiananmen Square. George Bush faced widespread criticism for preserving China's "most-favored-nation" trade status, allowing normal tariffs on its goods shipped here, despite the brutality of the Communist government. Bill Clinton, among others, demanded a reversal, which as president he has begun. But Bush's policy was the best...

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council on Monday strongly condemned North Korea's rocket launch, urged tightening of existing U.N. sanctions and warned Pyongyang of further consequences if it carries out another missile launch or nuclear test. China, a permanent veto-wielding council member and North Korea's protector on the 15-nation panel, backed the council's "presidential statement," which was adopted unanimously. U.N. diplomats said the...

China pressured American satellite companies seeking business in Asia to push for changes in U.S. export laws that eventually helped Beijing secure information useful in improving ballistic missiles, according to a Senate report. The bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee report, approved in a 16-1 vote and released Friday, is sharply critical of both the Bush and Clinton administrations, alleging lax enforcement of export security provisions designed to prevent foreign countries from getting...

By John M. Glionna, Tribune Newspapers and Ju Min Park in Seoul and Josh Meyer and Julian E. Barnes of the Washington Bureau contributed to this report | May 27, 2009

Tensions on the Korean peninsula rose further Tuesday as Seoul announced that it would join a U.S.-led initiative to curb nuclear trade and North Korea reportedly test-launched more short-range missiles. At the United Nations, representatives of the five permanent Security Council members plus South Korea and Japan began meetings that could lead to new sanctions against North Korea. North Korea said Monday that it had conducted a nuclear test and several short-range...

The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said Saturday he suspects a link between contributions to Democrats and Clinton administration decisions on missile-technology exports to China. "Don't know whether it's my head or my heart talking, but I think we're going to find something," Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.) said on CNN's "Evans and Novak." Helms' panel is one of several in the Senate looking into allegations of favor-trading in the administration's treatment of a...

The Bush administration will impose sanctions against North Korea after concluding that it sold Scud missile components to Yemen before President Bush took office, U.S. officials said Thursday. An announcement was expected Friday. The missile parts were sent by Changgwang Sinyoung Corp. in North Korea, the marketing arm for Pyongyang's missile-export program. The sanctions, which bar licenses and contracts for high-tech items, also apply to the North Korean government under an...

The Clinton administration plans to warn China that its weapons exports could bring punitive sanctions, and a debate continues within the government over whether the message is tough enough, senior officials said Monday. In response to what Washington calls mounting evidence that Beijing is shipping missile technology to Pakistan, Secretary of State Warren Christopher will raise the issue when he meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Qian Qichen on Sunday in Singapore, the officials said.

Two days after North and South Korea resumed cross-border family reunions, the Bush administration said Tuesday that North Korea has agreed to the first official security talks with the United States in 18 months. When President Bush came to office, he reversed a Clinton administration policy of cautious engagement with North Korea and suspended negotiations aimed at halting its suspected sales of missile technology. Bush offered in June to resume talks. Analysts in Seoul say the time is...